BATON ROUGE - Democrats blasted Governor Jindal over his healthcare policies as the threat to close the emergency room at Baton Rouge General Mid City renewed calls for the governor to expand Medicaid under Obamacare.

Ethel Wicker is grateful for Baton Rouge General having a working emergency room. She lives in Scotlandville and said that her health took a drastic turn for the worse earlier this year.

"If not for the doctor's and staff of Baton Rouge General ER, I would have died," Wicker said, who suffers from breathing complications. "Making it to Our Lady of the Lake, I would have died if I tried to make it to Lake or any place. I believe I would have died."

The emergency room almost closed last week due to financial issues of dealing with uninsured patients. State Democrats lay the blame squarely on Jindal for turning down federal money that would've expanded Medicaid coverage to the poor.

"As the governor continues to stonewall, Louisianians will have accidents, get sick and die," said Senator Sharon Weston Broome, (D) Baton Rouge. "Lives are hanging in the balance."